The Crisis of Civilization

Rating:
Summary: A mixed bag, but definitely worth reading
Review: Based on Belloc's lectures at Fordham University, New York, in 1937, "Crisis of Civilization" is a mixed bag. On the one hand, it is an insightful interpretation of history from an unabashedly Catholic viewpoint. On the other hand, some of Belloc's temporal notions of how to best cope with the dangers posed by this crisis seem anachronistic 65 years later.

The most compelling sections of the book may be found in the 100 or so pages. These passages alone make the book very worthwhile reading as Belloc delves into the creation and heyday of Christendom. He then tackles the negative temporal effects that the fragmentation of unified of Christendom had on Europe and the world in the wake of the Reformation. As usual, Belloc pulls no punches when it comes to ascribing many of the evils of our society (at least in 1937) to the theology that emanated from Reformation thinkers. He quite rightly considers the rise of modern capitalism as a result of Protestant theology.

However, Belloc goes off the rails, when he buys into the marxist logic that capitalism naturally devolves into monopoly and eventually communism -- the true, real, and most dangerous enemy to Catholicism. While he is certainly correct that world communism (or "green environmentalism", or "anarchism", or "progressivism", or whatever pseudonyms it's operating under these days) was and is the most vicious foe of the Catholic Church, Belloc errs in thinking that communism inevitably grows from market capitalism. Of course, it's difficult to fault him on this as he was writing in the late-1930s during the Great Depression when capitalism seemed to have failed and communism and atheistic socialism of various brands seemed on an unstoppable trajectory toward world domination

Naturally, then, some of Belloc's remedies to the capitalism were perhaps alarmist. As a supporter of American free-market capitalism, I found Belloc's proposed system of social engineering through massive taxation odious to say the least. However, his idea that the teachings of the Catholic Church can form a bulwark against the spread of communism by softening the more cut-throat aspects of capitalist society are right on the mark. It's not surprising, then, that since Belloc's time, the Church has been targeted for infiltration, corruption, and destruction by the forces of world communism and their useful idiots. And recent history has shown us that those countries where Christianity is strongest hold out the best against the easy despotism offered by socialists.

In case it's not obvious to this point, "Crisis of Civilization" provides an enormous amount of food for thought and is thus well worth reading, even if only to spur debate about where Belloc went wrong in the light of historical hindsight: the fall of Soviet and Eastern European communism; the present crumbling of European and Canadian socialism (yes, it's inevitable -- just look at the Canadian national health system); and the incredible dynamism and resilience of the American economy which has resisted many of the socialist incursions that European nations have foolishly embraced and which, contrary to Belloc's thesis, is still primarily driven by the engine of the small businessman.

Rating:
Summary: Finally, a Right Wing Attack on Capitalism.
Review: Hillaire Belloc's _The Crisis of Civilization_ is a reactionary polemic against runaway capitalist greed and the subsequent demands of international communism first published in 1937. The tone of this book is probably treasonous to many Amercans because of the disparaging comments about Capitalism and free-market economies. Belloc traces the history of Western Civilization from the rise of the Roman Empire to the state of the world in the twentieth century. The Roman Empire, which largely took on the philosophical initiative of the Greeks, was possessed of great organizational strength. However, the Roman Empire's prosperous economy was based on slavery and an overwhelming sense of despair prevailed. This was the setting where Christianity arrived to take center stage. Belloc describes the early Catholic Church much the say way as today's liberal historians: as an oriental mystery cult with a anthropomorphic God who died and rose again. The difference between the other mystery religions and the Christian Church was that the Church took the Death and Resurrection of Chirst as a literal truth rather than as a symbol standing for something else. Later theological and philosophical thought became more and more definite and less speculative as Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire. Belloc then goes on to describe the assault that the rise of Islam carried out on the Christian areas of the eastern Roman Empire under Constantinople. Europe would have become Muslim if Western Europe had not defeated Islam at Tours and later launched the Crusades which temporarily delivered the Holy Land back into Christian hands. Belloc regrets the subsequent schism between the Roman Church and the Eastern Church based in Constantinople. Feudalism was the form of government in Medieval Europe, where one's position was based upon status and hierarchical rank. Under this system, the peasantry gradually became more and more economically independent either as agricultural workers or small-business artisans. The guild system set up provided economic security to its members although it did not attempt to make everyone "equal." Competition was limited so that underselling from competitors did not swamp the lesser members of the guild out. This was so that monopolies could not be formed. Usury, the taking of interest on non-productive loans, was viewed as a sin and forbidden by Church law among Christians. Belloc does not idealize Medieval Europe, however. He relates how the Catholic Church became a "religious reign of terror" in the late middle ages. The Church had lost much of its moral authority because of the massive amount of material wealth it had accrued, particularly its extensive land holdings. The Church thus had to maintain its control by brute force. If a government has moral authority and goes in accord with human nature it does not have to resort to arbitrary tyranny to keep the peace. In some cases of heresy, the harsh retributions carried out reflected popular outrage at someone who would act destructively towards the Christian unity of society. Belloc likens these instances of rooting out heresy to the lynchings carried out in the South where law enforcement was not functioning properly. The Protestant Reformation, initiated by Luther against some Catholic practices, utterly destroyed the Catholic Christian unity of Western Europe. The result was a multitude of varying denominations all claiming to be possessed of the true faith but were rather groups following their own wills based on either personal ahistorical misinterpretations of the Bible or political agendas behind splits with the Catholic Church. King Henry VIII lined the English nobility's pockets when he broke from Rome and looted England's monasteries. Calvinism in particular was especially dangerous to the Catholic Church as it had the most complete system of theology, a well organized structure, and an international appeal. The chief errors of Calvinism were that it culminated in the belief that God's universe was mechanistic and deprived man of free will in matters of right and wrong. It denied that the Eucharist was the literal Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, a dogma held by the Church from the beginning. After the Reformation, Capitalism began to arise. The traditional restraints placed upon usury were also removed. Capitalism and the Proletariat came with a vengeance in the 19th century. Industrialization produced nations of sweltering slums. Small businesses were unable to compete with massive conglomerates. Wealth became controlled by the few and the majority of the people were, in Marxist terminology, "wage slaves." Communism, as Belloc notes, was the natural reaction of despair to Capitalist exploitation. Communism was doomed to fail because it was only the bastard child of Capitalism and its idea of a man totally shaped by his economic circumstances goes against the organic and occasionally irrational nature of humanity. The dangers of radical leftism are well known. The French Revolution attacked the Catholic clergy in France as being "counter-revolutionary." The Russian Revolution savaged the Orthodox Church, trying to completely divorce Russia from her spiritual tradition. At the time _Crisis of Civilization_ was first published the Spanish Civil War was raging. In this case the counter-revolutionary forces of Francisco Franco aided by Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany was successful against leftist insurgents by adopting their tactics. Belloc concludes that a return to the guild system, a decentralized, non-competitive economy backed by law might have a chance at reversing the decay of society. This would not create any type of utopia on earth, but it would grant greater economic freedom with more people running their own businesses and a greater distribution of private property. Belloc notes that the problem with this system (which has been labeled "distributivism"), is that it presupposes the Christian faith as a basis for society and a prohibition against usury for it to be implemented. This book will definitely be of interest to those who are seeking a "third way" between neo-conservative/classical liberal capitalism (the Republicans) on one hand and the socialist left (the Democrats) on the other.

Rating:
Summary: Finally, a Right Wing Attack on Capitalism.
Review: Hillaire Belloc's _The Crisis of Civilization_ is a reactionary polemic against runaway capitalist greed and the subsequent demands of international communism first published in 1937. The tone of this book is probably treasonous to many Amercans because of the disparaging comments about Capitalism and free-market economies. Belloc traces the history of Western Civilization from the rise of the Roman Empire to the state of the world in the twentieth century. The Roman Empire, which largely took on the philosophical initiative of the Greeks, was possessed of great organizational strength. However, the Roman Empire's prosperous economy was based on slavery and an overwhelming sense of despair prevailed. This was the setting where Christianity arrived to take center stage. Belloc describes the early Catholic Church much the say way as today's liberal historians: as an oriental mystery cult with a anthropomorphic God who died and rose again. The difference between the other mystery religions and the Christian Church was that the Church took the Death and Resurrection of Chirst as a literal truth rather than as a symbol standing for something else. Later theological and philosophical thought became more and more definite and less speculative as Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire. Belloc then goes on to describe the assault that the rise of Islam carried out on the Christian areas of the eastern Roman Empire under Constantinople. Europe would have become Muslim if Western Europe had not defeated Islam at Tours and later launched the Crusades which temporarily delivered the Holy Land back into Christian hands. Belloc regrets the subsequent schism between the Roman Church and the Eastern Church based in Constantinople. Feudalism was the form of government in Medieval Europe, where one's position was based upon status and hierarchical rank. Under this system, the peasantry gradually became more and more economically independent either as agricultural workers or small-business artisans. The guild system set up provided economic security to its members although it did not attempt to make everyone "equal." Competition was limited so that underselling from competitors did not swamp the lesser members of the guild out. This was so that monopolies could not be formed. Usury, the taking of interest on non-productive loans, was viewed as a sin and forbidden by Church law among Christians. Belloc does not idealize Medieval Europe, however. He relates how the Catholic Church became a "religious reign of terror" in the late middle ages. The Church had lost much of its moral authority because of the massive amount of material wealth it had accrued, particularly its extensive land holdings. The Church thus had to maintain its control by brute force. If a government has moral authority and goes in accord with human nature it does not have to resort to arbitrary tyranny to keep the peace. In some cases of heresy, the harsh retributions carried out reflected popular outrage at someone who would act destructively towards the Christian unity of society. Belloc likens these instances of rooting out heresy to the lynchings carried out in the South where law enforcement was not functioning properly. The Protestant Reformation, initiated by Luther against some Catholic practices, utterly destroyed the Catholic Christian unity of Western Europe. The result was a multitude of varying denominations all claiming to be possessed of the true faith but were rather groups following their own wills based on either personal ahistorical misinterpretations of the Bible or political agendas behind splits with the Catholic Church. King Henry VIII lined the English nobility's pockets when he broke from Rome and looted England's monasteries. Calvinism in particular was especially dangerous to the Catholic Church as it had the most complete system of theology, a well organized structure, and an international appeal. The chief errors of Calvinism were that it culminated in the belief that God's universe was mechanistic and deprived man of free will in matters of right and wrong. It denied that the Eucharist was the literal Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, a dogma held by the Church from the beginning. After the Reformation, Capitalism began to arise. The traditional restraints placed upon usury were also removed. Capitalism and the Proletariat came with a vengeance in the 19th century. Industrialization produced nations of sweltering slums. Small businesses were unable to compete with massive conglomerates. Wealth became controlled by the few and the majority of the people were, in Marxist terminology, "wage slaves." Communism, as Belloc notes, was the natural reaction of despair to Capitalist exploitation. Communism was doomed to fail because it was only the bastard child of Capitalism and its idea of a man totally shaped by his economic circumstances goes against the organic and occasionally irrational nature of humanity. The dangers of radical leftism are well known. The French Revolution attacked the Catholic clergy in France as being "counter-revolutionary." The Russian Revolution savaged the Orthodox Church, trying to completely divorce Russia from her spiritual tradition. At the time _Crisis of Civilization_ was first published the Spanish Civil War was raging. In this case the counter-revolutionary forces of Francisco Franco aided by Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany was successful against leftist insurgents by adopting their tactics. Belloc concludes that a return to the guild system, a decentralized, non-competitive economy backed by law might have a chance at reversing the decay of society. This would not create any type of utopia on earth, but it would grant greater economic freedom with more people running their own businesses and a greater distribution of private property. Belloc notes that the problem with this system (which has been labeled "distributivism"), is that it presupposes the Christian faith as a basis for society and a prohibition against usury for it to be implemented. This book will definitely be of interest to those who are seeking a "third way" between neo-conservative/classical liberal capitalism (the Republicans) on one hand and the socialist left (the Democrats) on the other.

Rating:
Summary: This time I really do not know what to think.
Review: This is the first of Hilaire Belloc's books that has left me somewhat bewildered. I really do not know what I think about it.

One thing I can say, however, is that it has given me a greater admiration for the Middle Ages, which Hilaire Belloc calls the height of civilization. Over the centuries the slavery was replaced by serfdom, and later, in the Middle Ages, by the free peasantry. Indeed they worked out a meager living, but they were truly independent, either by owning productive land, or by being members of a trade guild. Their minds were not focused on greed. They lived simple, fruitful, and (for many of them, at least) holy lives.

But then the protestant rebellion changed all that. The Church was looted. Usury became a widespread practice. Money became all-important. Widespread slavery returned (especially on the American continent - and backed by the slave owners' private interpretation of Scripture, of course!). And now, today, very few people own productive land, thus the "proletariat" (people who have no productive property and nothing to sell but their services) has grown. And let us not forget the protestant preachers and their "Health and Wealth" gospel!

So while making some interesting historical points it seems that Mr Belloc is against big business. But we are no longer a nation of farmers. We build products today (automobiles, airplanes, complex machines, electronics, rockets, etc.) that could not be built efficiently in "Mom and Pop Shops." Are we to do away with technology, like the Unabomber suggests? (shudder!)

I give this book four stars. I finished reading it months ago, but I must admit I am stumped by it. It is good reading, though, and I encourage you to read it for yourself.

Rating:
Summary: This time I really do not know what to think.
Review: This is the first of Hilaire Belloc's books that has left me somewhat bewildered. I really do not know what I think about it.

One thing I can say, however, is that it has given me a greater admiration for the Middle Ages, which Hilaire Belloc calls the height of civilization. Over the centuries the slavery was replaced by serfdom, and later, in the Middle Ages, by the free peasantry. Indeed they worked out a meager living, but they were truly independent, either by owning productive land, or by being members of a trade guild. Their minds were not focused on greed. They lived simple, fruitful, and (for many of them, at least) holy lives.

But then the protestant rebellion changed all that. The Church was looted. Usury became a widespread practice. Money became all-important. Widespread slavery returned (especially on the American continent - and backed by the slave owners' private interpretation of Scripture, of course!). And now, today, very few people own productive land, thus the "proletariat" (people who have no productive property and nothing to sell but their services) has grown. And let us not forget the protestant preachers and their "Health and Wealth" gospel!

So while making some interesting historical points it seems that Mr Belloc is against big business. But we are no longer a nation of farmers. We build products today (automobiles, airplanes, complex machines, electronics, rockets, etc.) that could not be built efficiently in "Mom and Pop Shops." Are we to do away with technology, like the Unabomber suggests? (shudder!)

I give this book four stars. I finished reading it months ago, but I must admit I am stumped by it. It is good reading, though, and I encourage you to read it for yourself.

Rating:
Summary: The Crisis of Civilization.
Review: _The Crisis of Civilization_ consists of lectures delivered by Catholic intellectual and historian, Hilaire Belloc, at Fordham University in 1937. The book is radical in that it advocates Belloc's unique economic system which he was to christen "distributivism" in his book _The Servile State_ which amounts to a return to the medieval guild system, as well as a curtailment of capitalism, monopoly, and usury, a restoration of property, and a return of Europe to the Roman Catholic Faith. For Belloc, the Faith (by this he always means the faith of Roman Catholicism) was central to the development of Western civilization, and with the Reformation and the splitting of Christendom a great loss occurred for Western civilization. The first chapter of this book deals with "The Foundation of Christendom" and shows how Christianity spread throughout Europe by operating through corporate cells (much as the communist revolutionaries operate), which consisted of Ekklesia - the familiar hierarchy of deacon, priest, and bishop, all united under the Western Patriarch, the heir to Saint Peter, the Pope. According to Belloc, it was Christianity which made possible the rise of the pagan slave to the level of serfdom, which involved ownership of property while living on the manor of a lord. With the collapse of the Roman empire, the medieval society was born, and it was this society which involved widespread ownership of the means of production, privately owned. However, a crisis occurred in medieval society brought about by heresy and a rising anti-clerical tide which resulted in the questioning of hierarchy and authority, the denial of the validity of the Roman mass, and eventually the Reformation. One heresy that was initially destructive for Christendom was that of the religion of Mohammed, which Europeans did battle against during the Crusades. For Belloc, Calvinism (or in its Catholic form Jansenism, or Gallicanism) was particulary destructive because of its doctrine of predestination. Predestination caused men to look for the Elect among the successful and thus was born a mindset which involved striving to obtain money and wealth in this life as opposed to focussing on the afterlife and the world beyond. This striving for wealth gave birth to competition and with the Industrial Revolution was completed the system of capitalism (based upon competition) which Belloc finds so noxious. Belloc also remarks that it was at this time that traditional emphasis on "status" was replaced by emphasis upon "contract". This emphasis upon contract made it difficult for the proletariat to obtain the benefits of production, reducing them to the level of "wage slaves". In addition, the lending at excessive interest or usury became commonplace in Europe. Nearly all religions have condemned usury, including of course Islam and Roman Catholicism, however when usury was allowed to proliferate the bonds holding society together began to weaken. Belloc unequivocally condemns the usurer keeping to the original teachings of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. Monopoly capitalism gave birth to an entirely new system of oppression, and in opposition to this was developed the ideology of communism (which denied tradition, religion, the existence of God, and the tradition of private ownership of property). Communism was presented as a panacea for the evils of monopoly capitalism; however, as Belloc believes it is a truly wicked doctrine attempting to rise up against tradition and overthrow society. Belloc also shows how materialism began to flourish through the doctrines of both Karl Marx and Charles Darwin in the nineteenth century. Instead of the communistic solution, Belloc offers a unique alternative to restore widespread ownership of property as well as to curtail the evils of monopoly and usury. Belloc writes, "First, the better distribution of property; secondly, the public control of monopolies; thirdly, the re-establishment of those principles and that organization which underlay the conception of the guild." Indeed, the widespread ownership of property and the means of production is for Belloc to be made possible by the establishment of a guild system (based on the medieval guild system) which will curtail the effects of monopolies from buying out the small business owner. Of course, such a system will only be made possible with the return of Europe to the Faith. Belloc ends the book with a discussion of the need for a Roman Catholic presentation of history, against the many Protestant and anti-Catholic historians (for example, Gibbon and Mommsen). He also notes the need for a Roman Catholic newsletter and system of education. The system presented here by Belloc is consistent with the teaching of the Roman Pontiffs. In particular, the encyclical _Rerum Novarum_ issued by Pope Leo XIII in 1891 calls for a society which would look much the same as that advocated by Belloc along with a corporativist state. The traditional teachings of the church and of such scholastics as Saint Thomas Aquinas on the free market and the "just wage theory" as well as the condemnation of communism by the papacy also play an important role in the thinking of Belloc.

Rating:
Summary: The Crisis of Civilization.
Review: _The Crisis of Civilization_ consists of lectures delivered by Catholic intellectual and historian, Hilaire Belloc, at Fordham University in 1937. The book is radical in that it advocates Belloc's unique economic system which he was to christen "distributivism" in his book _The Servile State_ which amounts to a return to the medieval guild system, as well as a curtailment of capitalism, monopoly, and usury, a restoration of property, and a return of Europe to the Roman Catholic Faith. For Belloc, the Faith (by this he always means the faith of Roman Catholicism) was central to the development of Western civilization, and with the Reformation and the splitting of Christendom a great loss occurred for Western civilization. The first chapter of this book deals with "The Foundation of Christendom" and shows how Christianity spread throughout Europe by operating through corporate cells (much as the communist revolutionaries operate), which consisted of Ekklesia - the familiar hierarchy of deacon, priest, and bishop, all united under the Western Patriarch, the heir to Saint Peter, the Pope. According to Belloc, it was Christianity which made possible the rise of the pagan slave to the level of serfdom, which involved ownership of property while living on the manor of a lord. With the collapse of the Roman empire, the medieval society was born, and it was this society which involved widespread ownership of the means of production, privately owned. However, a crisis occurred in medieval society brought about by heresy and a rising anti-clerical tide which resulted in the questioning of hierarchy and authority, the denial of the validity of the Roman mass, and eventually the Reformation. One heresy that was initially destructive for Christendom was that of the religion of Mohammed, which Europeans did battle against during the Crusades. For Belloc, Calvinism (or in its Catholic form Jansenism, or Gallicanism) was particulary destructive because of its doctrine of predestination. Predestination caused men to look for the Elect among the successful and thus was born a mindset which involved striving to obtain money and wealth in this life as opposed to focussing on the afterlife and the world beyond. This striving for wealth gave birth to competition and with the Industrial Revolution was completed the system of capitalism (based upon competition) which Belloc finds so noxious. Belloc also remarks that it was at this time that traditional emphasis on "status" was replaced by emphasis upon "contract". This emphasis upon contract made it difficult for the proletariat to obtain the benefits of production, reducing them to the level of "wage slaves". In addition, the lending at excessive interest or usury became commonplace in Europe. Nearly all religions have condemned usury, including of course Islam and Roman Catholicism, however when usury was allowed to proliferate the bonds holding society together began to weaken. Belloc unequivocally condemns the usurer keeping to the original teachings of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. Monopoly capitalism gave birth to an entirely new system of oppression, and in opposition to this was developed the ideology of communism (which denied tradition, religion, the existence of God, and the tradition of private ownership of property). Communism was presented as a panacea for the evils of monopoly capitalism; however, as Belloc believes it is a truly wicked doctrine attempting to rise up against tradition and overthrow society. Belloc also shows how materialism began to flourish through the doctrines of both Karl Marx and Charles Darwin in the nineteenth century. Instead of the communistic solution, Belloc offers a unique alternative to restore widespread ownership of property as well as to curtail the evils of monopoly and usury. Belloc writes, "First, the better distribution of property; secondly, the public control of monopolies; thirdly, the re-establishment of those principles and that organization which underlay the conception of the guild." Indeed, the widespread ownership of property and the means of production is for Belloc to be made possible by the establishment of a guild system (based on the medieval guild system) which will curtail the effects of monopolies from buying out the small business owner. Of course, such a system will only be made possible with the return of Europe to the Faith. Belloc ends the book with a discussion of the need for a Roman Catholic presentation of history, against the many Protestant and anti-Catholic historians (for example, Gibbon and Mommsen). He also notes the need for a Roman Catholic newsletter and system of education. The system presented here by Belloc is consistent with the teaching of the Roman Pontiffs. In particular, the encyclical _Rerum Novarum_ issued by Pope Leo XIII in 1891 calls for a society which would look much the same as that advocated by Belloc along with a corporativist state. The traditional teachings of the church and of such scholastics as Saint Thomas Aquinas on the free market and the "just wage theory" as well as the condemnation of communism by the papacy also play an important role in the thinking of Belloc.